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cluded as completely as the Lunar race from the character here assigned, of "children of the Sun." The last reason excludes also a more ancient CHANDRAGUPTA who, as Colonel ToD informs us, stands before MÁNIKYA-RÁI, in the long line, (which he has not published) of the Chohans' descent from their remote ancestor AGNI-PÁLA: though this prince, if real, may very possibly be the Lord of Oujein who is the subject of the Jain inscription already alluded to, (T. R. A. S. vol. i. p. 140.)

The same reason prevents us from profiting by another tradition often repeated by the same learned inquirer, both in his Annals of Rájasthán and his contributions to the R. A. S. Transactions, relating to another celebrated branch of the Agni-kula Xattriyas, the Pramaras. One tribe of this Rajput race, the Mori, is in the habit at this day of claiming for their own the celebrated CHANDRAGUPTA Maurya, founder of the dynasty so called at Palibothra in the days of SELEUCUS NICATOR. The account given by all the ancient Sanscrit authorities of the origin of that name is very different from this, viz. that it is the patronymic noun derived from the Sudra damsel MURA, of whom the king NANDA MAHÁPADMA became enamoured (being himself also of half-blood, the offspring of the Lunar prince MAHANANDA by a slave girl), and thus became the father of CHANDRAGUPTA, who afterwards succeeded by extirpating, with the Machiavelian Brahman's aid, his nine more legitimate brethren. This account is so universal-and it is so visible also even in the inverted accounts preserved by DIODORUS SICULUS, TROGUS POMPEIUS, and others in the west, (making SANDRACOTTUS the offspring of a queen and a barber, instead of a king and a barber's daughter) that it requires no ordinary attachment to the later chroniclers of Rájasthán to set aside these statements by making this king a member of a noble tribe of the purest Rajputs, to make him consequently unconnected altogether with those NANDAS whom he succeeded or displaced-and even to suspect the word Maurya, (as Colonel ToD does, T. R. A. S. i. 211,) to be an interpolation for Mori. There may however be a CHANDRAGUPTA to which such a tradition points with partial truth; and such I should have suspected to be the conquering CHANDRAGUPTA of our column, but for the objection of family above stated.

Upon the whole, our researches for the subjects of this inscription in the records of Northern and Central India, seem to be hitherto unsuccessful, notwithstanding, the various CHANDRAGUPTAS that have appeared there. Of the name SAMUDRAGUPTA I have not yet seen any trace; but to facilitate the progress of future inquiries, it may be use

ful to exhibit synoptically the genealogical facts which the pillar sup

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Another consideration, however, which should not be overlooked in this research, is the name of the contemporary king, mentioned in line 17 of the inscription, as having been overcome, together with several inferior princes, by SAMUDRAGUPTA. The king is called DHANANJAYA, and is described as of the race of UGRASENA, i. e. most probably the celebrated king of Mathura so called, the father of CANSA, who was slain by CRISHNA, and was, like his enemy, of the great lunar family of YADU. Now in inquiring who this king could be, the DHANJYE or DHANANJAYA, who is mentioned by ABU'L FAZIL at the head of the royal lists of Malwa, as having founded a dynasty there about 2000 years before, should appear as much out of the question as the fabulous ARJUNA, who also bore the same name. Yet this prince, who in ABU'L FAZIL's list (Ayin Acbery, vol. ii. p. 54,) has a SALIVÁHAN for his grandson—is identified by Colonel WILFORD, with a DHANANJAYA, mentioned in the royal lists of RaGHUNÁTHA as having sprung from a temple in the peninsula of India, and thence attacked and slain a king named A'DITYA, and then reigned at Ujjayin: and on the strength of this last tradition, he is identified also with the great SALIVÁHANA himself, the founder of the era A. D. 78, because this latter is celebrated as the foe of and destroyer of the celebrated VICRAMÁDITYA! (See As. Res. vol. ix. pp. 134, 135, 140, 141.) The authorities from which the age, and family, and reign of this DHANANJAYA, might perhaps have been obtained, are so loosely cited by this very learned but fanciful writer, and so mixed up with his own evidently groundless and inconclusive deductions of identity, that we can derive no aid from them in determining whether he be the king mentioned on the column or not, or what could be thence safely concluded concerning the age of the inscription.

VI. On the Influence of the Moon on Atmospherical Phenomena. By the Rev. R. EVEREST, M. G. S. M. A. S.

Having observed one or two coincidences in the Meteorogical Registers which I could not but deem remarkable, I was induced to examine them farther, in the hope of being able to furnish some rules which might be of use to those whose occupations are affected by atmospheric changes, such as the planter, the sea-farer, and others, and through them to the whole community. With this view, I have confined my observations to the chances of rain, that being the only uncertain condition in the bringing of our harvests to perfection; of heat and sunshine there is no lack at any time. In pursuance of this object, I now beg to call your attention to The influence of the Moon in producing rain.

Having remarked that a great proportion of the spring showers fell near the time of the new moon, I drew out a table of the quantity of rain that had fallen in the first four months of each year, for eight years, (which was as far back as I could obtain the registers,) showing at the same time what number of days it fell, before, or after, the day of new moon (see Table No. 1). From this it will appear that rain fell most abundantly on the 2nd, 5th, 6th, and 7th days before the new moon, and the 6th day after it, that, out of a sum total of 34,55 inches of rain, 25,31 inches fell within seven days from the day of new moon, and only 9,24 in the rest of the lunar period, being in the proportion of 2,73: 1, for nearly equal portions of time. If we take the quantities that fell in each year they are as follows:

Within 7 days of New Moon. Beyond that period.

1825.

1.82

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0.58

1.00

1.82

0.00

0.74

1.85

2.25

1.00

9.24

If instead of the quantities of rain we take the number of rainy days for the same periods, we have 45 rainy days against 23, being a ratio of

nearly 2:1. For each year the quantities are—

Within 7 days of New Moon. Beyond that period.

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Here the days of maxima are somewhat different from what they were before, being the 3rd, 5th, 6th, and 7th days before new moon, the day of new moon, and the first day after.

Upon examining further, I found that this excess of rain towards the new moon obtained in a degree through the succeeding months, May and June, but that the ratio was somewhat altered. For instance (see Table No. 2, of Calcutta year's rain), the rain that fell in the same days, about the new moon, during a period of eight years, amounted to 83.73 inches, and for the rest of the lunar period to 52.04 inches, being in the ratio of 1.6 1.0. The numbers of rainy days for the above two periods respectively were 68 and 54, in the proportion nearly of 13: 1. If we particularize the quantities of rain, we find that the 3rd, 6th, 7th, and 8th days before the new moon are now become maxima, as well as the 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th, and 10th after it. In the third division of the year, which I have confined to the month of July, the numbers approach still more a ratio of equality, the respective quantities of rain being 43.60 inches and 28.78 inches, or in the ratio of about 1·5: 1, and the numbers of the rainy days are very nearly equal, being 61 and 60, or in the ratio of 1.017: 1. In the fourth division of the year, which I have made to comprehend the months August, September, and October, the ratio is altered, the quantities of rain for the two periods being 96.75 and 119.39 inches, or in the ratio nearly of 1: 1-2, and the numbers of rainy days 159 and 173, being as 1 : 1.1 nearly. The different numbers are here placed, for the sake of comparison in a tabular form.

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Upon looking over the days of maxima in this last case, we find them to be the 3rd, 9th, and 11th, before the new moon, and the 3rd, 5th, 6th, 10th, 11th, and 12th, after. I must here observe, that the present mode of comparison is not strictly correct. As the lunar period is, properly speaking, only 29 days, the fifteenth day on the left hand of the table only occurs alternately. The comparison, however, is sufficient for my purpose. Taking the four periods of the year together, the inequalities may be accounted for by supposing four days to be the principal maxima : one of these being the fifth day after the new moon, and another the 9th day before it. It is true that the 9th day itself is but once a maxi

mum in the four periods. In the early part of the year, the days immediately succeeding it are maxima, and in the latter part of the year the days immediately preceding it. If therefore any cause can be assigned why the rain at one time should be a little retarded, and at another a little accelerated, there would be no error in supposing the maximum tendency to rain to occur on the 9th day. Two other days of maxima are the 3rd day before the new moon, and the 12th day after,

With a view of ascertaining whether the Barometer was similarly affected, I next put the heights of it at sunrise for five years into a similar table, and on taking the mean of the whole year, found that the fifth day after the new moon was the minimum. (See Table No. 3). My next object was to find whether the dew points varied in a similar manner, and I therefore reduced them from the wet-bulb indications in the registers, and those of Leslie's hygrometer preceding them. The method recommended in the 1st volume of GLEANINGS being too laborious to adopt, and Major OLIVER's tables in the GLEANINGS not having been published, I took the very simple method of multiplying the wet-bulb depression by 1·6, and subtracting the product from the temperature*. I do not mean by saying so to recommend the operation as a general rule, but only that, where the whole difference between the temperature and dew-point does not amount to more than two or three degrees (as is usually the case at sunrise at Calcutta), and the temperatures are between 80 and 50, the errors will not be important. But another and greater

difficulty still occurred to me, which was this. By a copious fall of rain the dew point is immediately lowered, so that on looking over the list of dew points on different days, the day of most moisture will appear to be the driest by its having the lowest dew-point. Thus, for instance, in May, 1830, they stood as follows:

Days of Month. 22nd, 23rd, 24th, 25th, 26th, 27th, 28th.
Dew-points at 72.9 78.2 74.9 75.1 75.6 74.9 77.9

sunrise, Rain-fall,

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0.10 3.00 4.22

Here the 25th and 26th were the days of the great storm, but looking at the dew-points alone, no indication is afforded of the quantity of moisturet. Unless, therefore, we could make due allowance for the rainfall, the dew-points alone would be a very imperfect mode of judging

* This rule would answer for an aqueous tension of 0.75 at the temperature of 90o. We think it would have been better to have used the aqueous tensions them. selves, for which a table is given in the Gleanings, I. p. 81 and 340.-ED.

† When rain is accompanied with a strong wind, and that from the north, the air is seldom saturated with moisture; the chief cause however for the fall of the dew-point is, the reduced temperature of the air during storms.-ED.

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